UGH! Nothing Cheaper than $200 R/T ROC to MCO??

[welovedis]

Why do I think I paid way less back in 2000 & 2001? Because I flew out of Buffalo? I know that rates have gone up but I can't fathom why the cheapest rate out of Buffalo or Rochester to MCO is running no less than $200 r/t. I have been checking SWA, Airtran, and JetBlue but nothing is coming up for less than $200. Any suggestions or should I just wait and see what happens?

I am thinking about taking DH to WDW for a surprise weekend trip so we would be flying out Sat 5/17 and returning Mon 5/19-dates are not flexible. Any help or ideas would be great!

 

[zulaya]

Count your lucky stars. The cheapest out of MSP non stop is $292. Cheapest one stop (with crappy times I might add) is $272. I'd jump for joy at only $200.

I think it's a fact of life now, until the airlines start getting profitable again, and when this whole Iraq business gets resolved, fares will be way higher than before.

And since the business travelers are still not travelling like before, the leisure travelers have to pay the high prices to fly.

 

[apagano]

Same experience here. We paid $177 per person back in 2001, but this year the cheapest we could get was $212. And we have to drive an hour away to a different airport plus make a connection in Atlanta just to get that fare!

Since you're only two months away and your dates are not flexible, you should probably book now before the fares go up.

 

[Dopey Sharon]

We paid $172.50 for our tickets from Philly to Orlando last November, on AirTran. I've been checking prices for our December trip (I can't check AirTran yet) on USAirways. It started at $210.50...went up to $216.50 the next week (I got them)...just checked yesterday and they are up to $244.50. Every trip I have gone on, the prices have ALWAYS gone up, not down. I like to book early to get the non-stop flights at the times I want at a lower price...they have never gone down.

 

[DebbieB]

Did you try flying down on Friday or Sunday? I know USAir here in Pittsburgh has cut their Saturday flights from 5 to 3. We planned on going Saturday May 10 to Friday May 16 but the flights were over $300. We got $201 going/returning on Friday afternoon. Good excuse to stay another day !

 

[n2mm]

I feel your pain here in the Wash. DC area. Still waiting for a decent fare for my May and July trips. I went to WDW 6 times last year and the most I paid for any trip was $148 rt from Dulles to MCO. The best I can get for my trip, even adjusting my days, is $240. I watch the flights every day and if I have to pay that price, it won't be until there are only 2 seats next to each other left before I spend that amount of money. We were going to go in Feb., but canceled that trip because of the airfare. I'm a little sick of the airlines complaining that no one will fly because they are scared....give me a break, give us a decent fare (granted I don't expect to pay as little as $148) and we'll fly, even with all of the hassles of security, it's still better than driving.

 

[CarolA]

Have you gone to your gas station lately? You are paying a LOT more for gas then you were this time last year. Airplanes use a lot of gas, therefore airfares are more expensive.

And you are right, businesss travelers are walking away. So we aren't subsidizing leisure anymore. My travel is down 90% from this time last year.

 

[welovedis]

Thanks for the thoughts, everyone! Guess I should count my blessings that we are even able to go this year. I think once I have confirmation from DH's boss (I let her in on the surprise) that he definitely has that Monday off, I'll go ahead and buy the tickets.

Yeah--talking about gas prices, I just got gas yesterday outside Buffalo, NY for $1.95/gallon. We haven't seen it that high in forever